I have no personal experience with Bookmooch, but was intrigued by the discussion on Reddit. Apparently you post the books you have that you don't want; when someone asks for it, you mail the book(s) to that person and receive "credits" for doing so. You can then use those credits to obtain a book from someone else.
I was bemused to see the list of "most available" books. The top item is Dan Brown's DaVinci Code (292 copies), followed by Dan Brown's Angels and Demons (289 copies), followed by another Dan Brown, followed by yet another Dan Brown, followed by John Grisham (Pelican Brief), followed by Dan Brown, Dan Brown, John Grisham, Rebecca Wells (Ya-Ya), Michael Crichton (Jurassic Park), then five more John Grishams...
I don't say that to diss the site itself - that list is just a reflection of the ultimate fate of popular books. If any TYWKIWDBI visitors have practical experience with the site, please post a comment.
Addendum: In response to Anonymous' fervent comment below, I'll provide a link to the "most wishlisted" books, topped by Hosseini's A Thousand Splendid Suns (504 requests), to show what the public is currently seeking. An interesting assemblage of titles...
Bookmooch is awesome! It's a great way to get books for cheap, and to get rid of the detritus on your bookshelves. It's also a really fascinating way to see, as you said, the fate of popular books, but also to see what books people want the most. Right now, all those vampire books by Stephenie Meyer are in really really high demand, but I bet in 3-4 years, they'll be right up there with The Da Vinci Code as the books everyone is trying to get rid of.
ReplyDeleteI can't recommend Bookmooch enough - it is a really fantastic and friendly community of people who love books and are happy to share that love.